Saint Blaise was a doctor in Sebaste, Armenia, his hometown, and he practised his art with extraordinary ability, great goodwill and piety. When the bishop of the city died, the acclamation of all the people designated him as his successor.

After Blaise was appointed bishop of Sebaste and to escape the persecutions of Diocletian, the saint went to a cave where he lived as a hermit. Sitting at the entrance of a cave, the birds brought him his food, and the animals gathered around him to receive his blessing or to be healed when they were sick: he could be seen feeding a fox, stroking the head of a lion or a panther.

During a hunting trip, the soldiers of the local governor came across this cave and saw the crowd of animals around Blaise, but they could not capture any of them. So the governor had the saint brought in under a good escort. On the way, Blaise saved a dying child who had swallowed a fishbone and got a wolf to return a pig he had stolen from a poor widow.

The governor, not being able to get him to sacrifice to his gods, had him thrown into prison. There the widow brought him bread and the head of her swine, and a candle: this explains the use of candles in the worship of the saint. Later the governor had him tortured with iron combs that lacerated his flesh, and ordered him to be thrown into a pond. But then Blaise made a sign of the cross, and the surface of the pond became solid for him. The governor then had him beheaded. At the time of his death, the saint asked God that whoever would invoke him for a sore throat or any other illness should be granted, and this was granted.